Isn't that nuts? We're so bad yet we still could realistically make the playoffs.

But if they didn't show up for this game after such a serious team meeting (I missed the game) ... that's a very bad sign.

Yeah, it's so strange in that regard. Mathematically it's not even way out there. Only four games back with 40 to go.

But the awful thing is I have no belief at all that they can get there with this coach. He doesn't have an answer and the team doesn't play well under him even when relatively healthy. It's simply not working.

Yep, there WILL BE "we want Phil" chants at the next Lakers homegame. Guaranteed. And if the Lakers are losing in that game, it will get nasty and embarrassing for O'Antoni and the Lakers when the home fans go berserk with the boos and the pro-Phil chants.

UCLA, Los Angeles, CA. Born and Raised. In Dr. Buss I Truss! THE ORIGINATOR OF: "Call It From Heaven Chick!" "To be removed if the Lakers make the playoffs." Well, I removed it for an hour and decided to put it back. I have to be honest.

Lakeshow24 wrote:Yep, there WILL BE "we want Phil" chants at the next Lakers homegame. Guaranteed. And if the Lakers are losing in that game, it will get nasty and embarrassing for O'Antoni and the Lakers when the home fans go berserk with the boos and the pro-Phil chants.

That video shows that this team doesnt have that spark .....that team 07-09 they play together with effort and desire.....this team doesnt have anything of that.....when i watch them i have feeling that the only three guys who really want to play for the lakers right now are Kobe, Metta and Clark. Others just dont care about anything and they play to take the money.

I'm being honest and I actually teared a bit lol. I really miss how Laker basketball used to be...bench mob with the Machine...Farmar..Powell...Ronny..DJ...Luke...Space Cadet..and most of all our stablizer in LO..wow what a depressing moment to see how this season has been compared to that season.

It's amazing that after the Lakers were swept by Dallas, the eventual champions, and the same team that mopped the floor with LeBron James and Co, that Jimmy Buss hit the panic button and blew everything up. I didn't feel good at that time about him panicking.

He should have just kept the team and coaching staff intact and went after revenge. Damnit.

UCLA, Los Angeles, CA. Born and Raised. In Dr. Buss I Truss! THE ORIGINATOR OF: "Call It From Heaven Chick!" "To be removed if the Lakers make the playoffs." Well, I removed it for an hour and decided to put it back. I have to be honest.

Lakeshow24 wrote:It's amazing that after the Lakers were swept by Dallas, the eventual champions, and the same team that mopped the floor with LeBron James and Co, that Jimmy Buss hit the panic button and blew everything up. I didn't feel good at that time about him panicking.

He should have just kept the team and coaching staff intact and went after revenge. Damnit.

In Jim's defense though I understand why he wanted to move both LO and Gasol for Pau. Both of them were no shows in the playoffs. While it was a risky move, a bold move, I think you have to applaud him for going for it. Now, the bad part is that he went for it when all of the forces of the NBA were against us. He tried to sneak it through right after Stern and Company had been publicly dead-set against the Lakers SPECIFICALLY landing more superstars. The timing was a big FU to the other owners and to Stern. That's why he slammed down with Basketball Reasons. The other owners said, "But Stern, this is what you said wouldn't and couldn't happen any more - and here the Lakers are doing it again."

So ultimately you could argue that it might not have been the best move because of that timing. But it was legal. And it was a high risk high reward move that might have set us up for the next several years.

In all of the dialogue about Jim Buss, I think he has NOT been given enough credit for his work on personnel. In that regard I think he's done a very good job. Look at his track record: he kept Bynum until he could turn him into Dwight (still a good move no matter how many people are looking back at Bynum with rose colored glasses), he was instrumental in getting Jordan Hill, Ramon Sessions (who I thought was a good find, but wasn't in the right system and didn't have the experience to help get us over in the playoffs), and of course he made that move for Chris Paul.

Where he's failed now three times is in the coaching hire department. I think Jim Buss' fault is that he is trying to have his hand in too many pies. Jerry was brilliant in that he deferred a lot of the basketball decisions. Jim wants to be involved in personnel and that's not necessarily bad. But he NEEDS DESPERATELY to stop trying to hire coaches. Just let Mitch hire the coach from now on.

Lakeshow24 wrote:It's amazing that after the Lakers were swept by Dallas, the eventual champions, and the same team that mopped the floor with LeBron James and Co, that Jimmy Buss hit the panic button and blew everything up. I didn't feel good at that time about him panicking.

He should have just kept the team and coaching staff intact and went after revenge. Damnit.

He got us Chris Paul wtf is wrong with that?? Too bad the trade got rescinded. Are you seeing what CP3 is doing with the Clippers??

denimPortugal wrote:This team can lose against any team! I have 0 confidence in the LAL! Unreal...

No playoffs...and no lottery pick!

BDG wrote:We are only THREE GAMES ahead of New Orleans for the WORST RECORD IN THE WEST.

This is insane.

That is the depressing part. We are doing poorly and yet there is no benefit if we stay this bad. No first round pick, so we don't get younger and the one time we get a good lottery pick that maybe we could get someone good, we won't keep them.

Though I'd put this here instead of the Dwight thread since its so negative:

From what I'm hearing it sounds like surgery may not be required (until post season) for Dwights shoulder, but he would be playing with pain for the rest of the season.

If this is the case, does anyone really think given Howard's history in the league, attitude since being here, and situation hes in with this horrible team, that he's going to push through the pain and try to perform the rest of the season??